


You Are My Sunshine

by DannyisDone



Series: Sanders Sides Agere Oneshots [6]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Age Play Caregiver Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Age Play Caregiver Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Age Play Little Deceit | Janus Sanders, Age Regression, Age Regression/De-Aging, Angst, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders Leaving The Dark Sides, Crying, Dark Sides As Family (Sanders Sides), Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, For one section of the story anyways, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, If more tags are needed please let me know!, In the first section they are actual kiddos, Kid Fic, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Relationships, Song fic, Swearing, Sympathetic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Sympathetic Dark Sides (Sanders Sides), Sympathetic Deceit | Janus Sanders, kind of?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-17 09:29:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28846839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DannyisDone/pseuds/DannyisDone
Summary: This story contains Age Regression and is NOT sexual!Janus has used age regression throughout his life in order to feel safe and secure, and often those times came accompanied by a the Sunshine Song. But so much in his life has changed since he last heard it...so it's no wonder that when he hears it again, he immediately feels small.+++Warnings: Crying, Storms, swearing, Remus is a bit gorey, there's like a hint of a dick joke in here, fighting, Janus thinks poorly of his regression at one point so be careful when reading that, if more are needed please let me know!
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders & Everyone, Deceit | Janus Sanders & Logic | Logan Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders
Series: Sanders Sides Agere Oneshots [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2145819
Comments: 16
Kudos: 91





	You Are My Sunshine

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Little Lamb in Wolf's Clothing](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28259670) by Anonymous. 



> Ooooh I am so glad I got to write this!! This is for the amazing anonymous author of the 'The Little Lamb In Wolf's Clothing 'Verse' They are an incredible writer, and one of my favorite author's on this site! They wrote me a very sweet story because I was feeling down, and I immediately wanted to return the favor! If you like my work (Especially if you like this one!) I highly recommend you check out their 'The Little Lamb In Wolf's Clothing'. I've linked it by using the 'Inspired By' feature on this site, and I will also leave links to their other stories in the same universe as well in the end notes! Again, I encourage you to read their stories, they are some of my favorites on here <3
> 
> To said author: I hope you enjoy this story! You really inspired me with some of our back and forth comments as well as your au in general! Again, thank you for such a lovely gift, and thank you for putting your work out into the universe for others to enjoy.

1998

“Sing us a song, Anx!” 

All three of the Subconscious sides were sitting in a blanket and pillow fort in the yellow side’s room, lovingly fashioned by Creativity, who had used a bit of his ‘dark magic’ to make the thing structurally sound. They had finished their snacks and scary stories, and it was well past all of their bedtimes. But that’s what happens when there’s no one watching a bunch of ten year olds. Deceit was laying down already, ready to turn in for the night, but fighting to stay awake for the sake of his friends. Creativity wasn’t far behind though, he just hid his sleepiness better. 

“I dunno, you guys’ll make fun a’me.” Anxiety mumbled. He was tired too, though it wasn’t unlike him to stay awake this late anyways. He couldn’t go to sleep before either of his friends, since he felt he had to make sure they were safe when going to sleep. As the embodiment of anxiety, he felt it his duty. 

“Uh uh! We won’t!” Creativity argued, and a hefty nod came from Deceit in agreement. Anxiety huffed a bit, not believing either one of them. They would always take an opportunity to tease each other! 

“Why don’t you sing, you’re suppose’a be creativity.” Anxiety pointed out, which earned him Creativity blowing a raspberry at him. Anxiety chuckled at the display. 

“You guys wouldn’t like my lullabies.” Creativity remarked, wiggling his fingers to add to the spooky nature of his words, though neither of the two boys sitting with him were intimidated by the other. He was about as scary as a daffodil, according to them. 

“Fine! But if you laugh I’ll steal your leg bones.” Anxiety threatened. Once more, the two other boys were hardly fazed by the threat. They all could tease and threaten all they wanted, but they were best friends. Sure, they would scuffle and fight, but at the end of the day they would always be there for each other. 

“Don’t sing bad and we won’t laugh.” Came a sleepy response from Deceit, which earned him a pillow to the face. The whole room was filled with laughter at the assault, before it gently lowered to soft giggles, each of the boys succumbing to their own bouts of exhaustion. Creativity decided to lay down next to Deceit, picking up his discarded stuffed octopus and cuddling it close. Noticing the action, Deceit did the same thing with his own stuffie. 

Anxiety, as expected, grew just a bit nervous about singing, but as he saw his friends settling down and getting ready to turn in for the night, he figured one song wouldn’t hurt. And hopefully it would put them to sleep, which in turn meant that he’d be able to go to sleep. So, gently, he started singing one of the lullabies that Thomas’s mom would sometimes sing to him. 

“You are my sunshine, my only sunshine…” 

When he was finished singing, he opened his eyes, realizing he had kept them closed the whole time so that he wouldn’t have to face their judging eyes. Creativity was fast asleep, somehow managing to fall asleep the moment he had closed his eyes. Deceit, however, was staring right at him, his eyes soft but still tired. 

“‘gain?” He whispered. Anxiety felt his cheeks heat up, feeling a swell of pride that his friend seemed to like his singing enough to prompt an encore. Anxiety gave a short nod, before crawling next to Deceit and lying down. 

“Okay, but you gotta go to sleep this time, okay?” He said, and Deceit nodded heavily. Anxiety smiled slightly, before closing his eyes once more began singing the song again, a bit softer so as not to disturb Creativity, and a bit more drawn out, to give Deceit enough time to fall asleep. When he finished the chorus a second time, he opened his eyes. His snakey friend had his eyes closed and was peacefully sleeping, or pretending to sleep. Anxiety wasn’t sure, but it made him relax enough to try himself. He scooted as close as he dared to, not wanting to make Deceit uncomfortable by crowding him in, before he carefully drifted off to sleep.

+++

2010

A storm sent vibrations throughout the house, thunder rumbling and threatening to turn into lightning at any moment. This was ignored by the two sides sitting in the living room, watching an old horror flick. 

“Boo, lame jumpscare.” Virgil declared, throwing pieces of popcorn at the beat up television. His actions earned him a loud cackle from Remus. This had become a regular for the two sides whenever Janus would turn in early for the night, which was becoming more and more common, though neither of them were all that concerned, and they teased about it being because he was an old fart. But him going to bed early meant they could do stuff that they shared in common, which was mostly a love for cheap horror films and talking shit about others. 

Before Remus could share some gorey fact about the real life story the film was based on, or rant about the horrible working conditions the crew went through while filming, a loud crash of thunder filled the house, shaking it, before the power abruptly flickered off. Virgil and Remus blinked as they found themselves in darkness, before breaking out into snickers, finding it just a bit ironic considering the last scene they watched. 

“Well, that ends movie night.” Virgil said, standing and stretching. Remus was quick to jump up as well. 

“I’m gonna go get jiggy with some lightning then,” Remus said, a wide grin on his face at the prospect of electrocution. Virgil considered telling him not to, but figured the act to be fruitless. He’d just have to make sure Remus wasn’t dead in the morning (An unlikely thing to happen, since Virgil was like 95% sure they couldn’t die, though if anyone in this magical brain was gonna find a way to do it, it would be Remus for sure). 

“Just don’t do it near any puddles. I don’t want to deal with a fried Duke when I wake up.” Virgil said, wrapping a discarded blanket around his shoulders. Remus laughed, already having snapped himself into rubber boots. At least he was taking some safety precautions. 

“No promises! Bye Fruit of the Gloom!” Remus yelled as he bolted towards the door, determined to get out while the storm was still good and strong. Virgil rolled his eyes, before beginning to head upstairs. He made sure to summon himself a flashlight so he could see as he headed up the stairs towards the bedrooms. He planned to do his nightly checks, make sure any doors that needed locked where locked, that the furnace wasn’t so high that it would catch fire, and that everyone was still breathing, the downsides of being the literal embodiment of anxiety. However, all of that went out the window when he finally made it to the top of the steps, his flashlight landing on a figure standing in the hallway. 

Virgil was shocked to see Janus standing there. His eyes were wide with fear, and his cheeks were reflective in the light, showing they were wet with tears. The deceitful side didn’t seem to know what to do with being caught, figuratively looking like a deer caught in headlights. 

“Dee?” Virgil spoke up, and whatever response he had been expecting, it hadn’t been watching Janus’s face crumple, before he immediately began to burst into tears, weakly backing away from Virgil. 

Of course, this made the anxious side very very worried. He lowered the flashlight so that it wasn’t shining directly in the other’s face, before he began to approach carefully. “Hey, it’s okay. Why are you crying?” Virgil asked, looking around for a second to see if there was anything he may have hurt himself with. But everything seemed fine, and he didn’t look like he was injured in any way. 

Janus seemed to take a second to think about his answer. Virgil took that second to get closer, and this time Janus didn’t back away. Virgil would never call Janus vulnerable to his face, but he couldn’t help that he seemed like that right now. 

“Everythin’ was dark and loud.” Came Janus’s response as he used the sleeve of his nightshirt to wipe at his face. Virgil hadn’t known Janus to be afraid of the dark before, but it was also storming outside. Though Virgil wasn’t scared of storms, he was rather fond of them, he knew some people were. Perhaps the combination of dark and storm was just too much for his friend to handle. 

“Why didn’t you summon a light, dude?” Virgil asked and watched as Janus shrugged a bit, his eyes seeming to look at anything but at the grey side. However, he did take a tentative step closer towards Virgil. 

“Do you wanna go back to bed?” Virgil asked, though he wasn’t sure why he felt the need to be the other’s escort. But something about the current state Janus was in pulled at Virgil’s protectiveness, and he was already pretty protective of his friends. He watched as Janus nodded, hesitantly, as if he wasn’t sure what the other would do if he said yes. 

“Okay, come on Scales. Let’s get you to bed.” Virgil for half a second considered offering to carry Janus. It would probably be easy, considering Janus wasn’t all that tall, and Virgil was pretty strong. But he let that thought die quickly. Janus would never in a hundred million years be okay with being carried unless under threat of death (and maybe not even then). So he settled with wrapping an arm around the other’s waist and leading him back towards his room. 

Janus didn’t seem to mind the closeness, and Virgil may have imagined it, but he could have sworn that Janus even leaned into the hold. Now Virgil was worried that maybe his friend had a fever or something. Once they were in Janus’s room, Virgil tried to flip the light on, only to be reminded that the power had gone out. 

“Do you need me to tuck you in too?” Virgil asked, and when he thought about saying it, he had meant for it to come out as teasing. But when the words actually escaped his mouth, it had sounded very genuine. And Virgil felt thankful for that too. Because Janus looked at him with soft watery eyes and very carefully nodded, a shock to Virgil. 

“Please?” Janus whispered and, oh god. Virgil was actually really endeared to this side of Janus. He smiled softly at his friend, before giving his hip a tap. 

“Yeah, sure thing.” At that, Janus left the safety of Virgil’s arms and hurried into the bed, getting himself under the covers as Virgil approached. Just to test his fever theory, he placed a hand on Janus’s head just as he was pulling his stuffed snake close to his chest. Janus tilted his head at the action, and jeez, Janus was acting so freaking cute. And Virgil for the life of him couldn’t figure out why. Even if he was scared, that didn’t give him the right to be adorable. 

“Just making sure you aren’t sick.” Virgil commented, before pulling the covers up around Janus, tucking him in. Virgil assumed that would be that, and he stood to leave, but then Janus was grabbing his wrist with his free hand. Virgil was shocked by the action, of course, but waited to hear the other out before teasing him about being clingy. 

“I wanna tell you a secret, but you gotta be nice ‘bout it.” Janus said, sitting up a bit, which kind of defeated the whole purpose of being tucked in but whatever. Virgil bent down so that they were closer to eye level, a small smirk on his face. 

“And what if I’m not, Lyin king?” Virgil was going for playful banter, trying to make the far from normal situation feel a little more familiar, but he watched as Janus’s face fell, a crestfallen look that would have broken Virgil’s heart if he had one. He needed to fix this. 

“Sorry sorry, that was just a shitty joke.” Virgil defended. He stood up straighter, before walking to the other side of the bed. He didn’t miss the way Janus seemed to follow him with his eyes, probably quite unsure of what his intentions were. Even Virgil felt unsure of himself as he climbed into Janus’s bed, plopping himself beside the other, though staying on top of the comforter. He then held out his pinky towards Janus, using his flashlight to shine on it so Janus could see the offer.

“I promise I’ll be nice. And I won’t share your secret. Unless I absolutely have to.” Virgil made sure to add that last bit, he knew better than to tie himself into an unbreakable pinky promise. There were situations too dire to keep secrets, and Janus would have to accept that. 

Janus looked at the pinky, considering if Virgil was sincere or not. When he deemed the other to be telling the truth, the smallest smile returned to his face, and he intertwined their pinkies, sealing the promise. Confident that Virgil wasn’t going to make fun of him, Janus began to explain.

“Sometimes I feel...Small…” He admitted, his eyes falling to were they were still holding pinkies, Janus not willing to be the first one to let go. Virgil blinked, before a small smirk crossed over his face. 

“That’s because you’re the shortest.” He teased, and watched as Janus whined and finally pulled his hand away. Virgil snickered, feeling only a little bit bad as Janus huffed and crossed his arms. 

“I hate you. I don’t wanna tell you anymore.” He said, and it was only now that Janus was talking at full volume did Virgil notice how different his voice sounded. Gone was the suave tone that sounded like he was speaking in cursive, replaced by a higher and softer one that seemed reminiscent of when he was a kid. If Virgil hadn’t just teased Janus, and watched him grow defensive, he might have pointed it out. Instead he opted to try and appease his friend. 

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist.” He defended, holding his hands up. “I won’t do it again, what do you mean by small?” He asked, hoping to encourage the other to keep talking. Janus bit his lip, a very tiny part of him telling him not to trust Virgil. But he trusted Virgil a whole lot, that’s why he wanted to tell him in the first place. Mind made up, he sighed and tried to answer Virgil’s question. 

“Small like, like… like when I was a kid. It happens a lot when I’m scared or lonely.” He confessed. “And I want to do stupid things like suck my thumb and be held and cuddled because that’s what I did when I was a kid and those feel safe. It makes me feel safe.” Janus’s voice didn’t have what Virgil could now correctly define as a child-like tone anymore, and he could probably safely bet that this conversation wasn’t making him feel ‘small’ anymore. Virgil remained quiet for a moment, waiting to see if Janus would continue talking, but when he didn’t, and Virgil felt the other’s anxiety growing, he decided he needed to ease any worry. 

“That’s okay Janus. You have the right to do whatever you need to feel safe.” He explained. Sure, those things were kind of weird, but he wouldn’t judge his friend for doing what he needed to feel safe. Janus didn’t seem convinced though. 

“It’s dumb. I shouldn’t need to do those things. I shouldn’t actually feel like a kid.” He argued, trying to convince himself that that was the truth. “And I guess I wanted to tell you...Because...God I don’t even know.” Janus buried his face in his hands, trying to hide his shame. Virgil watched in almost stunned silence. Janus had never been this open with him before, he’d probably not been this open with anyone ever. It was hard seeing his friend so broken up about something like this. Without second thought, Virgil carefully wrapped an arm around Janus’s shoulders, pulling him into a very loose hug. 

“I’m glad you told me. And I don’t think it’s weird or dumb. We should look this up, I doubt you’re the only person who feels like this.” Virgil said with a small smile. He watched as Janus carefully moved his hands away to look at him, They stared at each other for a second, Virgil hoping he was coming off as comforting. He got his answer when Janus slumped against him, hiding himself away in Virgil’s shirt. The grey side smiled at the action, before pulling Janus into a proper hug. 

“Can you stay?” Janus asked, his voice getting close to that childlike state once more. “And sing the sunshine song?” Virgil felt his face heat up at the request, but who was he to deny such a sweet request. 

“Yeah, I’ll stay. Any particular reason why that song?” Virgil asked, perhaps just to postpone singing it as much as he could. 

“It just...Makes me feel safe.” Was all Janus could manage to say. He wiggled his way down until his head was rested on Virgil’s lap, figuring it would be a bit more comfortable. The other smiled softly down at Janus, before nodding. He’d do anything to keep his friends feeling safe. Even if it meant singing a silly song. He closed his eyes, deciding to card his fingers through Janus’s soft curls, and began to sing. 

“...You make me happy when skies are grey…”

+++

After ‘Accepting Anxiety’

A loud thrashing could be heard from Remus’s room as he sliced through yet another mannequin with his morning star. Despite the thing already being ripped in half, Remus swiped at it once more, releasing all the pent up anger that had been building in him since Virgil started hanging out with the conscious sides. Tears welled in his eyes but he refused to let them fall. Fuck Virgil. Fuck the conscious sides. 

He brought the morning star above his head and let it slam into the soft body, flinging stuffing around the room. All he had managed to do since Virgil’s departure was make a mess. And Janus wasn’t much better. The first night after Virgil had left the yellow side had locked himself in his room, and refused to come out. Even when Remus begged and pleaded. The last thing Remus needed was to be alone, but that’s where he had found himself. And then when Janus did decide to come out, he pretended like nothing was wrong! He made coffee that morning, ignoring the melted stove and broken lamp, and even offered to pour Remus a cup as he stared in disbelief. 

“We aren’t going to talk about this?” Remus had asked. 

“Nope.” Janus had responded. 

And it had made Remus’s blood boil. 

It had been a few days since they talked to each other. Remus hated it. He hated Virgil and he hated that Janus was leaving him to deal with that hatred on his own and he hated hated hated that he couldn’t bury his morning star further into the dismantled mannequin before him. 

He dropped the morning star from his hands, letting it disappear as it fell. He flopped onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling, hating all the little stars and sticky hands that hung from it, because those had been put up there by Virgil too. When he heard a small knock at his door, he ignored it. Because it was Janus, and Remus was still mulling over if he hated Janus or not right now. (He didn’t hate Janus, of course. But he hated feeling like Janus wanted nothing to do with him, but he allowed himself the luxury of pretending.) The knocks came harder though. 

“Rem?” Janus said through the door. “I’m sorry.” His voice was wet, and it made Remus sit up and stare at the door as if it was the offending speaker. 

“I’m sorry.” It said again. “It’s all my fault and I miss you and I miss Vee and everything is too much right now.” Remus wasn’t totally convinced it wasn’t the door at this point, because the voice that he was hearing sounded so sad and scared, two things he rarely associated with Janus. He stood up from the bed and approached the door, leaning on it slightly, waiting to see if anymore sounds would come from it. 

“I’m sorry for ‘gnoring you and making you sad. I’m sad too...Can we please be sad together? I dun wan’ be ‘lone right now.” 

Remus opened the door, half expected it all to be a figment of his imagination. Which is why when he found Janus, dressed in pj’s and a yellow blanket over his head and shoulders like a shawl, he felt his own tears coming on. 

“Yeah…” His voice cracked a bit. “Yeah we can be sad together.” Remus said, pulling Janus into a deep hug, which was reciprocated immediately. Remus could guess what was going on. Janus had regressed, and the person he normally went to now hated them. Remus didn’t know much about Janus’s regression, but he knew what it was and was totally okay with it. He had ‘babysat’ Janus a few times while he was regressed and Virgil went to go play house with the conscious sides…

He felt Janus’s grip on his shirt tighten, and a sob choked out of him. It managed to release the few tears Remus had been holding back. They stood there for a few minutes, holding each other close. There was a part of Remus that knew that they would have to talk about this, that it wasn’t exactly fair that Janus had ignored him for days and then only sought him out when he was regressed. (Not that he was mad at Janus, little or big. They were both hurting and grieving in different ways. But Remus’s feelings were hurt, and he wasn’t one to hold back how he felt about things.) But for now, he was more than content to relish in his friend’s presence and comfort. 

“Wanna sit on my bed? It’s probably more comfortable than just standing here.” Remus suggested, and was relieved when he felt Janus nod against him. Remus took a step back and held his arms open, silently offering to pick Janus up if he wanted. The regressor nodded, and was swiftly being lifted into Remus’s arms. He tucked himself into Remus’s neck as he was carried over to the bed. Remus sat down with Janus still in his arms, and helped him settle on his lap. They sat in silence for a few more minutes, before Janus ended up speaking. 

“How do we make it feel okay?” He asked, and Remus couldn’t tell if he was still regressed or not, or if that even mattered at this point. Big, Little, whatever. This feeling permeated down into their broken hearts and there was no light at the end of it, or at least they were yet to find it. 

“One day at a time, I guess.” Was all Remus could say, but it seemed to be an answer Janus took comfort in, before he seemed to relax, slumping against Remus’s body and allowing himself to be held. Remus didn’t realize how comforting it would be to hold Janus, how nice it was just to have a reminder that he wasn’t alone in this. There wasn’t a moment he’d have to be sad alone, it could be something they could do together. 

“Will you sing the sunshine song?” Janus asked, grabbing onto Remus’s shirt again and holding it. Remus smiled softly, though it was a bit of a broken one. That had been Virgil’s song, and he knew that. But they could make new memories. They WOULD make new memories. 

“Sure thing, baby blep.” Remus said, before slowly closing his eyes. He moved one hand to cradle Janus’s head, hesitating a moment to see if the action was safe to do. But Janus didn’t pull away or whine, so he figured it was okay. 

“...You’ll never know dear, how much I love you…” 

+++

Present 

Janus had never really sought out acceptance, at least not in the form that it had come. He’d only ever wanted to get Thomas to listen to him, whether or not Thomas accepted him and his door got moved to the Light’s Side never was one of his concerns. But it had happened, and even Remus had managed to get accepted, if only by extension of Janus’s own, since he down right refused to move up with the lights without his friend. 

Patton and Logan were slowly growing more and more comfortable with him around, always ready to hold a conversation with him. He and Patton had even been making plans with one another, which was something Janus never could have dreamed of expecting. Roman was coming around. They had both apologized for their actions, and though he was still wary, he didn’t feel the need to second guess every single thing they agreed on just because it was something that Janus believed in. And Virgil...Well things were tense still. There wasn’t outright hatred, which Janus was grateful for. It was more awkward conversations and races to see who could get out of the room to avoid the other first. 

It was late afternoon, and he found himself wandering into the kitchen to get a snack. Logan was sitting in the living room reading, and he could hear Patton busying himself in the kitchen either planning something for dinner or maybe working at the dining table. However, Janus stopped dead in his tracks, right in the space between the kitchen and the living room when he heard the soft humming coming from the kitchen. 

Tears well in his eyes before he could even think to stop them. All at once, emotions he’d thought he’d managed since his acceptance came flooding over him. He was frozen, unable to run and hide to preserve his persona. And it wouldn’t be long until Patton noticed his presence and would look up and see him crying and--

A large hand was suddenly on his shoulder, and it made Janus jump, a mangled cry escaping him out of fright. When he looked up, he saw it to be Roman, who a few seconds ago had been planning to call him some pun related to snakes and then scoot past him to get to the fridge, but now had a worried face when he saw the tears streaking down the other’s face. 

“You okay Janus?” He asked, which grabbed Patton’s attention, who was also now looking at him, concerned caked on his face. Janus tried to swallow the lump in his throat, but it was no use. His lip began to quiver as he tried to fight the onslaught of emotions he suddenly had, which only managed to make everyone more concerned. 

“Hey hey, it’s okay.” Patton said, immediately jumping into Dad mode. He walked over towards the two. Janus had been honest about his regression, but only out of necessity. He knew he would eventually involuntarily regress in front of them, and figured it would be better that they knew about it rather than it coming from nowhere, though he had insisted that they didn’t have to baby him or watch him or anything like that. He was more than content to take care of himself. 

But that had been Big Janus, and Little Janus held none of those wishes. 

“What’s got you all worked up, Jan?” Patton asked, stepping closer. Janus’s crying had turned into hiccups, which had drawn the attention of Logan, who heard the commotion and came to see what was going on. 

“S-song.” Janus managed to blubber out against the painful lump in his throat that begged him not to speak. All three faces seemed puzzled at his words though, and that frustration only managed to make him want to cry more. 

“Should I get Remus?” Roman suggested, more so to adult minded people around him. 

“Would you like that, buddy?” Patton asked, turning his attention back to Janus. The regressor nodded, trying to wipe away some of his offending tears. Roman nodded in turn. He gave Janus’s shoulder one final squeeze, before he and Logan went off to find Remus. 

“Now, what did you mean by song? Did you hear a song?” Patton asked, seeming to forget his humming from before. Janus nodded, and the reminder brought fresh tears to his eyes. 

“Sunshine.” Janus got out, and recognition filled Patton’s eyes, as he recalled what he had been doing just moments before. 

“Oh, Virgil just taught me that song, and I can’t seem to get it out of my head,” Patton confessed with a small smile, however his words did not seem to ease Janus even a little bit. So Patton did the only thing he really knew how to do whenever one of his friends was crying. 

“Would you like a hug?” Patton offered, opening his arms to show that he meant it, and was only a bit surprised by how quickly Janus nodded and moved into his hold. Patton was quick to meet him though, wrapping him in a tight hug with the Little buried his crying face into Patton’s shoulder. 

Patton expected Roman and Logan to be returning with Remus when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. What he didn’t expect to see was Logan returning with Virgil, who seemed quite distraught. 

“Prince said Janus was upset?” Virgil asked as he made his way over, Logan right behind. Patton nodded, but took note of the way Janus seemed to tense up in his hold at the sound of Virgil’s voice. 

“I think he started crying because of my humming.” Patton explained, gently stroking Janus’s back. 

“Well, what were you humming?” Logan asked. 

“Sunshine song.” Janus mumbled, answering for Patton, though he still kept his face hidden from everyone. Patton and Logan were still at a loss for why a song would send Janus into such a state, but recognition and understanding flashed on Virgil’s face. And then it was immediately replaced by guilty feelings that demanded resolution. He opened his mouth to say...something. Honestly he didn’t know how to approach this, and was just the tiniest bit grateful when a loud clattering came down the stairs, followed by a loud shriek from Roman. 

“You can’t just fall down the stairs!” Roman yelled. When everyone looked over, Remus was a mess of limbs at the bottom of the steps, but his smile was unmistakable. 

“It’s faster!” He declared, before untangling himself from himself and standing up, looking at the group before him. His eyes jumped from Janus, to Patton, back to Janus, to Virgil and Logan, he frowned, and then his eyes were back on Janus. 

“What did the hell happen?” He demanded not so eloquently as he walked over. When he got closer to Janus, the little offered him a small wave, but seemed content with being hugged by Patton. He had calmed down considerably, just occasionally hiccuping, though the lump in his throat still made it too hard to speak much. But seeing as Janus seemed alright, at least that was one worry off of Remus’s knee or whatever body part stored concern. He turned his accusing eyes next to Logan and Virgil. 

“He regressed and started crying when he heard me humming.” Patton provided, though that didn’t help Remus much, until Virgil added the missing qualifier. 

“He was humming ‘You Are My Sunshine’.” Virgil said, and at least he had the decency to look guilty about it. Remus sighed. That was an unfair thing to think. He wasn’t mad at Virgil anymore. But that didn’t make the past any easier to deal with, not for Remus, and especially not for Janus. 

“Sowwy. I can be big.” Janus said, moving a bit out of Patton’s hold, seeming to think that everyone was crowding him because he was regressed and not because he had started crying. Everyone was quick to assure him that he didn’t have to. 

“We’re more concerned about why you started crying,” Roman piped in, saying what everyone was probably thinking. Everyone nodded in agreement. Janus, feeling everyone’s eyes on him, was more than content to bury himself back into Patton to avoid all their gazes, feeling quite shy and overwhelmed. 

“Does the song make you sad?” Logan asked, and Remus and Virgil suddenly shared worried looks. That very well could be the case. It seems like whenever the song was sung by them, it was almost always to soothe a crying Janus. Big and little. And Virgil didn’t even know the half of it, having left and causing the worst of Janus’s big emotional issues. Still, the moment Logan said it, they were sure that it was true. 

And the moment after, Janus disapproved that theory. 

“No. It makes me feel safe.” He said quietly. “I love it.” The last three words were barely a whisper, and yet it rang loudly in the former dark sides’ minds. 

“Do you need to feel safe, kiddo?” Patton asked, fresh worry bubbling in him. Janus shrugged, the question feeling a bit too complicated as he slipped further in headspace. A hand that wasn’t Patton’s began carding through his hair, and it did the trick, making him relax completely. Said hand belonged to Virgil, whose face wore just a fraction of a smile. 

“We can help you feel safe, Jay.” Virgil said, and everyone seemed to realize what he meant, everyone nodding their head in agreement before dispersing. Janus looked up for just a second, confused by what that was supposed to mean, but then suddenly he was being coaxed to move, much to the little’s annoyance. 

“C’mon, let’s go to the living room. It’s much more comfortable in there.” Patton ushered Janus to move, but the little whined and huffed, determined to stay buried in Patton’s sweater. 

“Want me to carry you?” Virgil asked, his brain momentarily flashing back to a time he had considered carrying Janus but didn’t ask. Well now he would ask, and he would always be willing to lift the other up whenever he needed. 

Janus nodded heavily, and it seemed the offer was probably the only thing that would have managed to get Janus out of Patton’s hold. Carefully, Virgil lifted Janus up, the little helping the hold by wrapping his arms and legs around the purple side. When Patton chuckled softly, Virgil sent him a playful glare, which was only met with more cooing. 

Virgil and Patton walked into the living room. Janus was sat down in the middle of the couch, and he looked absolutely unhappy about being set down. But then a blanket was being wrapped around his shoulders. 

“There you are, sweetheart.” Patton said, ruffling Janus’s hair a bit. Janus smiled and felt his cheeks grow warm, before his attention was stolen away by cackling and then another tumbling down the stairs. 

“You get a sick thrill out of raising my blood pressure?” Roman demanded to know as he stepped over his brother’s body at the bottom of the stars. Remus giggled. 

“You know what else rises because of blood?” Remus asked, and was immediately met with a light smack on the back of the head from his brother and a scolding look from Logan. “Whaaaat. I was gonna say vampires.” He defended with a face that betrayed that’s exactly what he wasn’t going to say. 

Roman walked into the living room, watching as Patton recovered from the conversation he’d overheard and Virgil was over by the tv stand looking through movies. He then approached Janus, who seemed unperturbed by anything going around him, more interested in running his hand up and down the soft blanket. Roman knelt down in front of him as if he was presenting a gift to a king, which managed to grab Janus’s attention, who cocked an eyebrow in confusion. 

“I have something for you, though you might be a bit too big to enjoy it.” Roman explained, before summoning in his hand a soft yellow rattle. Janus peered at it with careful eyes. 

“For me?” He asked, as if surprised that Roman would give him something like that. Roman nodded. 

“Ya know? Rattle? Like rattlesnake? I can’t be the first one who’s thought of this.” He teased before handing the side the toy. Janus took and held it to his chest. He was feeling a bit too old to enjoy playing with it, but he was immediately touched that Roman would give him a gift, so he had no plans of putting it away. 

“Thank you Roro.” Janus whispered, and Roman beamed, looking over to Patton, needing someone else to confirm that Janus had thanked him and that he;d done a good job. Patton chuckled and nodded his approval, before Logan interrupted. 

“And I have here your stuffed snake, I believe you named him William Snakespeare?” Logan asked as he approached, handing the stuffie to the little. Janus nodded his answer to the question, before pressing the toy to his face, enjoying the soft texture. It was so nice, being taken care of like this. Why had he never come to them before while regressed? Big him was a dummy head. 

“And I brought your paci, baby snake!” Remus declared, deciding to take the spot next to Janus on the couch. Janus giggled a bit, unbothered by anyone seeing him acting small. At this point, they were encouraging it. 

Everyone made themselves comfortable on the couch, settling in for a movie like one big happy family. Virgil had picked Disney’s Robin Hood, one of the movies that he knew Janus liked. When the movie was over, it was time for Patton to start dinner, which ended up just being pizza and snacks as everyone agreed it was definitely going to be a movie marathon kind of night. And as each movie went on, everyone found themselves sitting closer and closer, until they were all cuddled together. 

Eventually, Patton and Logan decided to turn in for the night. Everyone wished them farewell, Virgil coaxing Janus into giving them a small wave as they left. Then Roman declared he needed at least some beauty sleep, else he might wake up with a mustache in the morning, prompting Remus to leave just a few minutes later, declaring that he was going to superglue a mustache to Roman’s face. Which left Janus and Virgil, the shorter of which had managed to worm his way onto the other’s lap. He had been fighting sleep though the last two movies, and was close to passing out.

“You had an interesting day today, huh baby.” Virgil asked, ruffling Janus’s hair. The little nodded and rested his head on the other’s chest, his eyes closed. Virgil watched him. He wanted to apologize, for everything. Not just leaving the dark sides, but for even the smallest things like leaving the room just because Janus had entered, not because he didn’t want to stay, but because he didn’t know what to say. But that was a conversation for Big Janus. And right now, he still had a little in his lap, sucking on his pacifier and cuddling his stuffie and rattle close. 

“Sunshine song?” Janus whispered around the pacifier, his eyes opening just to look up at Virgil. The purple side melted, before placing a soft kiss into the other’s curls. 

“Okay, but you gotta go to sleep, okay?” Virgil said, and Janus nodded, before settling back down onto Virgil’s chest. He smiled softly, before closing his own eyes and leaning back into the couch, singing the song. 

“...Please don’t take my sunshine away…”

**Author's Note:**

> Here are a few more links to other stories within the author's au, as well as the story they wrote for me
> 
> Of Broken Mugs and Warm Hugs: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28571901/chapters/70022466  
> Actions Speak Louder Than Words: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28696581/chapters/70353909  
> Remus to the Rescue: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28796727


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